Bob Willginghttp://wxpr.org
enHistory Afield: Remembering the State Fur Farmhttp://wxpr.org/post/history-afield-remembering-state-fur-farm
<p align="center">&nbsp;</p><p>Many Wisconsin hunters are aware of the pheasant propagation program conducted at the state game farm in Poynette, which annually hatches thousands of pheasants for hunting opportunities across the southern half of the state.&nbsp; Few however, are aware of the fur propagation program. But as writer Bob Willging recalls in today’s History Afield, fur was once a thriving part of game farm operations.</p><p></p><p>The old boys of the state game farm were all gone by the time I interviewed Marv “Koke” Kaukl at his home in Poynette in the spring of 2000.</p>Thu, 12 Mar 2015 21:48:08 +0000Bob Willging30990 at http://wxpr.orgHistory Afield: Remembering the State Fur FarmHistory Afield: Home for the Hunthttp://wxpr.org/post/history-afield-home-hunt
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5;">Saturday is opening day of Wisconsin’s annual gun deer season.&nbsp; For many families the hunt is about much more than taking a deer - it’s a time of family bonding, camaraderie and tradition.&nbsp; In today’s History Afield, Writer Bob </span>Willging<span style="line-height: 1.5;"> has the story of a famous World War II combat pilot, who made deer hunting with his family a priority while home on leave in 1943.</span></p><p></p>Fri, 21 Nov 2014 10:00:00 +0000Bob Willging26389 at http://wxpr.orgHistory Afield: Home for the HuntThe Once-Popular Art of Hunting With Live Decoyshttp://wxpr.org/post/once-popular-art-hunting-live-decoys
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5;">It’s duck hunting season in the </span>northwoods<span style="line-height: 1.5;"> and while plenty of artificial decoys will be used by </span>waterfowlers<span style="line-height: 1.5;"> to lure birds within gun range one thing they won’t be using is live decoys. &nbsp;</span></p>Thu, 23 Oct 2014 14:57:04 +0000Bob Willging25199 at http://wxpr.orgThe Once-Popular Art of Hunting With Live DecoysSummer White House on the Brulehttp://wxpr.org/post/summer-white-house-brule
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5;">The President of the United States endures a demanding schedule.&nbsp; But it wasn’t always this way. In today’s History Afield writer Bob </span>Willging<span style="line-height: 1.5;"> tells the story of the summer of 1928 when President Calvin Coolidge moved the center of American politics to the quiet shores of northwest Wisconsin’s most famous of trout waters, the </span>Brule<span style="line-height: 1.5;"> River.</span></p>Thu, 28 Aug 2014 09:00:00 +0000Bob Willging22972 at http://wxpr.orgSummer White House on the BruleHistory Afield: Duke's Outboardshttp://wxpr.org/post/history-afield-dukes-outboards
<p>An outboard motor hung on the back of a well used fishing boat is an iconic symbol of summer in the Northwoods. &nbsp;For years in the Northcentral Wisconsin lakes country of Oneida and Vilas counties, if someone had an outboard motor in need of repair, there was no question of where to take it - Duke’s Outboards.&nbsp;&nbsp;Dukes was a Northwoods institution for more than 60 years.&nbsp;</p><p></p>Thu, 10 Jul 2014 09:00:00 +0000Bob Willging20820 at http://wxpr.orgHistory Afield: Duke's OutboardsOne Morning in March, 1933http://wxpr.org/post/one-morning-march-1933
<p>It’s May and we’re still waiting for the ice to melt on most lakes in the Northwoods.&nbsp; Lake Superior is still about halfway iced over. &nbsp;But even when it’s thoroughly covered with ice, conditions can be treacherous.</p><p><span style="line-height: 1.5;">In today’s History Afield essay, we hear the story of Vern </span>Frechette’s<span style="line-height: 1.5;"> memorable trip out on the ice…one morning in March 1933.</span></p><p><span style="line-height: 1.5;">&nbsp;&nbsp;</span>&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>Thu, 01 May 2014 09:00:00 +0000Bob Willging17621 at http://wxpr.orgOne Morning in March, 1933Trapping in the Blood: the Carl Schels Storyhttp://wxpr.org/post/trapping-blood-carl-schels-story
<p>When the stock market crashed in late 1929, ushering in the Great Depression, the prosperity of the 1920’s screeched to a halt.&nbsp; As factories and mills closed their doors, millions of Americans found themselves unemployed. &nbsp;</p><p>In today’s History Afield, WXPR Contributor Bob Willging tells the story of one man who left Chicago during the Depression to make his mark in the Northwoods.</p>Thu, 03 Apr 2014 09:00:00 +0000Bob Willging16419 at http://wxpr.orgTrapping in the Blood: the Carl Schels StoryNorthernaire: Waldorf of the Wildernesshttp://wxpr.org/post/northernaire-waldorf-wilderness
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5;">The resort industry in Northern Wisconsin goes back over 100 years to when tourists were first lured to the lake country on the heels of the lumberjacks.&nbsp; Small family owned resorts with cottages lining lake shores catered to fisherman in the early days.&nbsp;</span></p>Thu, 30 Jan 2014 15:18:09 +0000Bob Willging13749 at http://wxpr.orgNorthernaire: Waldorf of the WildernessThe Mysterious Death of Edward Keelerhttp://wxpr.org/post/mysterious-death-edward-keeler
<p>Hunters and trappers spend a great deal of time alone in the woods, and outdoor activities in remote areas have their share of inherent dangers. &nbsp;</p><p>Those dangers were even more apparent in the 1930s, a time of limited communication, large tracts of remote country, few heavily traveled roads, and the occasional gangster, moonshiner or poacher.</p><p>In today’s History Afield, Bob Willging tells the story of one man’s mysterious death in the woods in 1931.</p>Thu, 26 Dec 2013 16:08:57 +0000Bob Willging12390 at http://wxpr.orgThe Mysterious Death of Edward KeelerSixty Years Ago, A Bloody Gun-Deer Seasonhttp://wxpr.org/post/sixty-years-ago-bloody-gun-deer-season
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5;">Wisconsin’s gun deer season is approaching. &nbsp;It’s a time when many hunters across the state look forward to getting away from the pressures of work, spending time in the woods. &nbsp;</span></p><p><span style="line-height: 1.5;">But as </span>WXPR’s<span style="line-height: 1.5;"> Bob </span>Willging<span style="line-height: 1.5;"> relates in today’s History Afield essay, the 1942 murder of a conservation warden in Florence County had deer hunters in northeast Wisconsin anything but relaxed.</span></p>Thu, 21 Nov 2013 10:00:00 +0000Bob Willging10963 at http://wxpr.orgSixty Years Ago, A Bloody Gun-Deer Season